


Bucky Barnes: President of the Steggy Fanclub

by Plum_in_Cryo



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Bucky Barnes Falls, F/M, Fluff, Might Need Tissues, Steggy hope, ends with angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-04
Updated: 2016-07-04
Packaged: 2018-07-21 13:41:53
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,254
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7389244
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Plum_in_Cryo/pseuds/Plum_in_Cryo
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After noticing Peggy's marked attraction to Steve, Bucky vows to get the two of them together.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Bucky Barnes: President of the Steggy Fanclub

     The look they exchanged, no sustained, was full of meaning. They never looked away from one another, no again. _She_ never looked away from _him_. Even when Bucky put on his best smile and made his invitation, still the woman’s eyes would not part from the person of her affections. The woman in red left as quickly as she had arrived, a vision of softness and feminine strength and beauty.

     Bucky looked after her, wondering at the fine catch Steve had found. He chuckled to himself.

     “I’m turning into you,” he told his best friend, “It’s like a horrible dream.”

     Bucky turned to Steve when Steve gripped his arm in reply. The vision of loveliness had already vanished into the night.

     “Maybe she’s got a friend,” Steve said, walking back to his seat, mirth dancing in his eyes.

     Bucky shrugged and returned to his chair, noting the definite change that had come over Steve. Yup, the little punk was in love. Bucky smirked, it was a funny thing to watch. Steve had never had a steady dame in Brooklyn. In fact, the only dates Steve ever went on were ones that Bucky had prearranged and haggled into existence. Joining the army had changed Steve, a lot. Bucky sipped his drink plotting to make sure that Steve got his girl.

x-x-x-x-x-x-x

     The next few days were full of preparations. Fittings for uniforms, selecting weapons, choosing equipment. Bucky also had a schedule full of appointments and checkups to ensure that he was healthy enough to “follow _Captain America_ into the jaws of death” like Steve had said. He didn’t know why he had to be healthy to go into the jaws of death, but Colonel Phillips had ordered it, so shall it be done. Besides the nurses were nice, and pretty, and they actually acknowledged his charming existence, unlike Steve’s girlfriend, Peggy, so sitting in the doctor’s office for hours wasn’t all that bad.

     Suddenly, gunshots rang out from somewhere in the underground facility. Bucky jumped up from the exam table, startling the nurse who was about to take a blood sample. He raced through the tunnels as more shots sounded. Bucky burst through the door of Howard Stark’s lab just in time to see Agent Peggy Carter slam an emptied gun on a table and stalk out of the room. Bucky saluted as she passed. He didn’t know what her rank was in army terms, but he would take no unnecessary risks, especially after Peggy Carter just unloaded a gun on some poor guy.

     From where he was standing, Bucky couldn’t see who Peggy had unloaded on. He didn’t think it mattered. Probably some punk just made a fresh comment and paid for his words. Though, Peggy didn’t seem the murderous sort. She may have just been testing the revolver for Stark. Moving to investigate, Bucky found that everyone in the lab stood in shocked silence staring at Howard Stark and --- Steven Grant Rogers. From Steve’s body language, Bucky saw that his best friend was shaken. Had Steve been Peggy’s victim? Bucky couldn’t believe it. It couldn’t be. The night before Peggy and Steve had practically gotten engaged, but today Peggy had tried to kill Steve. Bucky had to know the reason.

     Ducking out of the lab, Bucky waited to intercept his best friend. Steve exited a few minutes later, and Bucky had to jog to catch up to him.

     “Steve, Steve, slow down!” Bucky caught up to Steve and grabbed his arm.

     “Buck, what are you doing here? I thought you had tests today.”

     Bucky shrugged and continued. “Not important. What is important is what the heck just happened in there.” Bucky threw a thumb in the direction of the lab.

     Steve blushed. Now, blushing means different things for different people. Some people’s ears turn red, or their cheeks turn red. For some people their entire body turns the brightest shade of crimson you have ever seen. Steve was a full body blusher and right now he looked like a ripe tomato. “Um—oh man. You saw that?” Steve ran his hand through his hair. “Uh—that, that was nothing. Howard was just showing me some new equipment.”

     Bucky had always been able to tell when Steve was lying. Actually that was no special skill because Steve was one of the worst liars he knew, and right now Steve was trying his hardest to lie. It didn’t work. “I saw Peggy in there.”

     If it was possible, Steve’s face reddened. Nervously, Steve loosened his tie. “Yeah, she was in there. Checking on something—“

     Bucky interrupted. “Peggy was in there shooting a gun at you, I think, but I couldn’t see clearly. Stop lying to me and tell me why the heck she tried to kill you. She’s a level headed woman and I don’t think she would try to kill you without good reason, and believe me there have been moments where I’ve wanted to strangle you, so it does happen. What I want to know is why it happened this time.”

     Steve was quiet. His face got a shade redder. Bucky was afraid that if anything else embarrassing happened, Steve’s face was going to explode. “Well I was waiting to speak to Howard, but he was busy so I was waiting in one of the office spaces. Well the blonde girl, Debbie I think, was sitting at her desk and---“ Bucky started looking for exits in the event that Steve’s head combusted because it seemed imminent.

     “’And’ what, Rogers.”

     “And we kissed. I don’t know why. You know I’m terrible with girls and I didn’t know what to do. But it was nice you know, but then Peggy saw and well—I got shot at. I didn’t think Peggy would actually do it, but I guess I deserved it.”

     Bucky didn’t know whether to congratulate his friend for actually getting a girl, or double over laughing at the whole awkward situation. From the pitiful look on Steve’s face, Bucky decided that neither response would be helpful or kind. Steve definitely needed Bucky’s help to recapture Peggy’s affections. After all what were best friends for? Operation: Get Steve and Peggy Back Together Without Peggy Figuring Out What Was Happening (Or Steve For That Matter) had begun. x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

     The next day Operation: GSAPBTWPFOWWH(OSFTM)—Operation: Gatsby for short—was in full swing.   Bucky had informed the other Howling Commandos of Steve’s plight and they had agreed to help Cap get his girl.

     Step One: See if Peggy was still mad.

     None of the other men wanted to die that day, so they unanimously voted that Bucky, as leader of the operation, should be the one to interview Subject #1. Bucky obtained access to Peggy’s schedule from a pretty brunette secretary. He waited for her outside of Colonel Phillip’s office.

     After what seemed like an eternity, Peggy emerged like a woman on a mission, her arms full of files, her heels clicked against the stone floor. Bucky wiped his hands on his pants, straightened his uniform tie and approached Peggy.

     “Agent Carter, do you have a minute?”

     Peggy turned quickly, she didn’t recognize Bucky at first. “Oh, hello Sergeant Barnes, I have a bit of time, yes. How are you doing? You didn’t look very well when St—“ Peggy blinked and her tone changed “Captain Rogers brought you back.”

     Bucky wanted to say _Yes, I’m feeling just fine. Here watch me run away because I don’t want you to shoot me like you shot Steve yesterday because you are obviously still mad with him._  But he felt that would not be healthy.

     “Thank you, ma’am. I’m on the mend, thanks to Steve, and you I hear.”

     Peggy smiled. “I was just doing my part, Sergeant. Did you have a question for me?”

     Bucky scrambled to create a question that was not ‘Are you still mad at Steve?’ After several awkward moments, Bucky decided that there were enough witnesses in the room to ensure that Peggy wouldn’t murder him for being blunt.

     “Um—kind of. Well—I don’t know how to ask this, but—are you still mad at Steve? Everyone knows about what happened, in the lab and all, but they don’t really know why you did it. I made Steve tell me the whole story last night and, I mean, he’s definitely not innocent but it’s not all his fault and I’d hate for you to loose what you guys have together just because Steve was being dumb.”

     Peggy’s tight-lipped expression broke into a smile before Bucky was done. “James, it touches me how much you care for Steve, but that doesn’t excuse his actions. I trusted him, I thought he was different, but his actions proved otherwise.” Her eyes held disappointment. Bucky feared that maybe Steve had gone too far. Bucky still wouldn’t give up.

     “Steve feels horrible for what he did. He’s determined to make it up to you one way or another. If there’s one thing I can tell you about Steve Rogers it’s that he doesn’t give up.”

     Peggy smiled a sad smile. “Thank you, James. I do hope he doesn’t in this instance either. Now if you would excuse me, Mr. Stark needs these reports to finish your uniforms. You have an early day tomorrow.”

     Bucky bid her farewell and exited to inform the rest of the Commandos of the mountain they had to climb.

     Step two: Have Steve apologize in every way he knew how.

     It was hard to send letters when they were on missions, but Bucky made sure that Steve wrote and sent one to Peggy everyday, even when Steve wasn’t available to write. Bucky could forge Steve’s handwriting so perfectly Steve’s mother couldn’t have told a difference. Several nights saw Bucky surrounded by the Commandos writing apology after apology to Agent Margaret Carter, London, England. Every letter wasn’t from Bucky though. Steve wrote one or two, detailing their missions, renewing his apology.

     When the film reel crew arrived, Bucky made sure they got the perfect shot. The Howling Commandos planning their next mission. Captain America pointing to locations on a map and checking direction with his compass. The compass close-up was Bucky’s doing. After all, the people of America had the right to know who Captain America’s secret love was. And a certain woman in England needed to know that Steve was hopelessly in love with her.

     Step three: Make Steve and Peggy go on a date.

     The day Peggy’s letter arrived, Bucky wasn’t sure who was happier, himself or Steve. Bucky was unable to pinch the letter from Steve’s pocket, but he could read it on his friend’s face. Peggy had forgiven Steve and was willing to allow them a second chance. Bucky was thrilled. His plot had worked. He could make a job out of this, getting estranged boyfriends back in their girl’s good graces. Orchestrating reconciliation wasn’t as hard as Bucky had thought. Now the last objective was to get Steve and Peggy to their dance and hire a photographer to capture a picture of the happy couple.

     Bucky wanted to ask Steve what his plans were once he got back to London, but their current mission intervened. Dr. Arnim Zola was on a Hydra train racing through the Alps. The Commandos needed to intercept and capture Zola and bring him to London, not that hard.

     The mission went wrong. They didn’t realize how many guards were on the train. Nor that Hydra’s weapons were quite so powerful. As he fell, Bucky’s last conscious thoughts thanked God that it was him and not Steve. _Hey,_ he thought as his eyes fluttered closed, _maybe the punk’ll finally get his date, if he doesn’t have me in the way._

x-x-x-x-x-x-x-x

     Peggy stepped carefully around the broken glass and debris. The pub smelled of burnt wood and spilled alcohol. She heard muffled crying coming from the backroom. Stepping in, Peggy saw Steve slumped over a table crying silently with a bottle of scotch in his hand, several empty bottles at his feet, and the broken remains of others that appeared to have been throw scattered across the room. Peggy’s heels crunched on a broken piece of bottle. Steve sniffed and straightened, addressing her with a voice heavy with tears.

     “You know the serum didn’t just affect my muscles, it affected my cells.”

     Peggy watched him carefully, walking over to the bar and sitting on a stool. She watched Steve silently as he poured the rest of the Cognac into his glass. He sniffed, “Which means—I can’t get drunk.”

     Peggy gave Steve a tight-lipped smile. His words were hiding so much. She had just heard the news, Bucky Barnes had fallen from Arnim Zola’s train. Steve had written the report. After reading it, she had set off to find him and make up in person. He needed support, sighing she realized that Barnes’s purpose had been fulfilled.

     Ever since Steve and Peggy had fallen out Bucky had been annoying them back together, in attempted but failed secrecy. Now Peggy was comforting Steve, telling him not to blame himself for what had happened, that it’s wasn’t his fault, that it had been Bucky’s choice. Steve acted like he wasn’t listening, but he came with her and pulled out her chair at dinner. Even though they didn’t talk, and Steve’s eyes were still puffy and red, they were together. They would be together through thick and think. All thanks to James Buchanan Barnes: President of the Steggy Fanclub.

**Author's Note:**

> Leave me a comment, request a fic, I love getting new inspiration.
> 
> Thanks for reading :)


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